Chapter 2: The Other Woman’s Lies
Colonel Reed helped Lila sit on the couch, gently checking her injuries. “How long has this been going on?”
“Almost a year,” Lila whispered, tears falling. “I thought if I was a better wife… he’d stop seeing her.”
Brooke laughed from across the room. “Oh please. He stopped loving you the day I walked into his office. I’m the one who actually satisfies him.”
Derek tried to act tough. “This is my house. You’re trespassing, old man. Brooke’s pregnant with my son. We’re building a new family.”
Reed’s eyes narrowed. “You put your hands on my daughter and my grandkid, and you think you’re walking away clean?”
He spent the next few hours making calls. Old Ranger buddies started digging. What they found was ugly — Derek had been funneling company money to Brooke, and the two of them had researched ways to induce miscarriage.
At the hospital, the doctor gave Lila pain medication and put her on bed rest. Reed stayed by her side the whole time.
“Dad, what if they take the baby from me?” Lila asked quietly, holding her belly.
“They won’t,” Reed said firmly, squeezing her hand. “I buried men in places nobody will ever find. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect you two.”
Later that evening, Brooke showed up at the hospital room with flowers and fake tears. “I’m so sorry, Lila. Derek can be so aggressive sometimes. I tried to stop him…”
Lila stared at her in disbelief. “Are you serious right now?”
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Reed stepped between them. “Save the act. We know about the drugs you bought to slip into her tea.”
Brooke’s mask slipped. “You can’t prove anything.”
